Due to increasing awareness of environmental concerns of energy usage of light sources, it is becoming more and more significant to develop more efficient and environmentally friendly light sources for homes, offices, etc. The standard incandescent bulb has become increasing suspect as an efficient light source, while compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) contain mercury and as a result are not Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) compliant.
Currently, many researchers are looking to light emitting diodes (LEDs) as the light source of choice, because LEDs are nearly twice as efficient and last 10 times as long as CFLs but contain no mercury. LED base designs are facilitating greater light output with less heat output and lower power consumption. However, the directional nature of LED emission coupled with current lens design has made it problematic to deliver adequate usable light from LEDs for general light purposes. Some manufacturers have resorted to LED arrays contained in a sphere, while others have implemented “fly-eye”-style lens arrays, to create adequate light dispersion. However, a simple single lens would be ideal from a manufacturing cost perspective, provided a design could be found that would adequately disperse the light from a single high-output LED.
Turning to another application, situations often arise when it is desirable for law enforcement or military personnel to stun or disorient subjects for a brief period of time to avoid escalation to extreme or deadly force. Situations also arise where civilians may need to defend themselves against a would-be assailant. Various nonlethal devices exist for such purposes, including tazers, stun guns, stun grenades (flash bangs) and pepper sprays. However, most devices of this type require a level of proximity that can be undesirable, especially for non-professionals. And while pepper sprays can project their active ingredients some distance through the air, there is still potential for dispersion also to the individual deploying the spray. Devices such as stun grenades provide a momentary burst of light and sound to disorient assailants, but this device is only effective instantaneously and is not accessible to the general public.
Currently, some law enforcement and military forces are employing laser dazzlers to direct a narrow or widely focused beam of light in order to temporarily blind or visually disorient individuals when escalated force is unnecessary. These dazzler devices provide visual interruption at significant distances and thereby can avoid proximity effects on the individual employing the device. However, these devices must be aimed at the target to achieve the desired effect; and having the luxury of time (and mental fortitude) to aim a weapon while being assailed is beyond the capacity of most non-professionals.
The ideal device for such situations as these would remove the need for proximity (as the laser dazzlers provide), would mitigate proximity effects (as stun guns provide), would remove the need to aim the device (as stun grenades provide), and would provide a significant time duration of effect (such as the laser dazzler provides in comparison with a stun grenade).